So much of weight loss, weight loss maintenance, and building a strong body however is related to our mental state so I wanted to share some things that I think can help make sticking to your diet and exercise routine just a little bit easier when you’re in a funk and trying to loose some weight – aside from the obvious which is, of course, just eating healthier.

Jonny Bowden, PhD, CNS is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition, and health. Not only is he a board-certified nutritionist with a master’s degree in psychology, but he’s also the author of fourteen books on health, healing, food, and longevity! His new book, Smart Fat, just came out, so I thought it was the perfect time to turn to him to reveal the five things we probably didn’t know about fat. Fittingly, his book has the fatty green of the moment, avocado, on its cover.

My brother moved from New York to Seattle to work for Microsoft and then Amazon, and in the process, he became super environmentally-conscious (Before, he was freaking out over the lack of good steaks there…now he’s a mostly vegan triathlete). What does that mean? It means that when he came back to NYC to visit my parents and me, and he saw how many water bottles I go through every day, he literally yelled at me (YELLED!). This led me to do research into fitness shakers and bottles to replace my pile of Fiji and Poland Spring ones. I hate to admit this, but not only did I go through five to six a day, but I was also horrible about recycling them. Luckily, it turns out a lot has changed since those shabby, old plastic bottles ruled the market, which impart nasty plastic-like “flavoring” to beverages and can easily accumulate bacteria over the course of usage.

Okay, okay…I know using healthy and cocktail in the same sentence is a bit of an oxymoron, but with the rise in health and fitness awareness, the options for cocktails that won’t totally mess with your diet are growing fast. Be Mixed, for example, is an all-natural, zero-calorie cocktail mixer that was launched last year by two female 29-year-old Harvard Business School graduates who were tired of settling for vodka sodas, while Fruits and Wine is a low-cal French rosé (they just launched three new flavors: Cherry Rosé, Grapefruit Rosé, and Strawberry Rosé). Hoping to get a bit more creative? For those looking to flex their mixology muscles, I turned to some of the country’s leading experts and asked them to share their favorite “healthy” cocktails for spring!

Looking for an alternative to oatmeal, cereal, or an Americano? So were we, so we turned to some of the country’s leading wellness experts and asked them to share with us their favorite to fuel for a long day. Here’s a look at nine awesome recipes to make now!